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The longest road trip on the Braves’ 2026 schedule is here.

The team kicks off May with its only three-city road trip of the season, a nine-game jaunt which carries through next weekend.

Unfortunately for us people who appreciate a healthy night’s rest, this trip is back on the West Coast, starting Friday night in Denver against the Colorado Rockies.

But thankfully, there’s only one of those left over the final 4.5 months of the season (at the Giants and Padres in late June) after this one.

So prep your coffee pots for an extra shift and get ready for some elevation shenanigans the next few days at Coors Field.

The Braves will turn to Grant Holmes (2-1, 3.62 ERA) to open the trip. The right-hander, who is coming off back-to-back starts against the Phillies, has been a bit of a one-off-inning guy of late. He allowed two runs in the third and one in the fifth last Saturday against Philadelphia. In each of his prior three starts against the Phillies, Marlins and Angels, the two, three and two runs he allowed, respectively, each came in a single inning.

Holmes has been living a bit dangerously, with 20 hits allowed and 21 strikeouts to 12 walks in 27 1/3 innings. But to date, he hasn’t been burned badly, going six innings in three of his last five starts and not allowing more than three runs in any of his first six starts.

He’ll be facing off against Rockies left-hander Jose Quintana (1-2, 4.91), who the Braves have some familiarity with from his 2023-24 tenure as a Met. It’s still early in the season but Quintana’s Colorado tenure has not gotten off to the best start. He spent time on the injured list with a right hamstring strain after making his first start and his 4.91 ERA through four starts is his worst since 2021 and the second-worst of his 15-year major league career.

He also has more walks (11) than strikeouts (nine).

However, he may have found something last time out, working a season-long 5 1/3 innings and allowing one run on two hits, striking out five and walking two in a 3-1 win at the New York Mets on Sunday.

This will be just his second home start of the season, but the first didn’t go very well. He allowed six runs (four earned) on eight hits over five innings against the Dodgers on April 20. That start also saw him surrender two of the four homers he’s given up through four starts, something Atlanta will look to exploit as the team which has hit the third-most homers in the majors this season (43) in the launching pad that Coors can be.

Game Info

Game Date/Time: Friday, May 1, 8:40 p.m. EDT

Location: Coors Field, Denver, CO

TV: BravesVision

Streaming: MLB.tv (and Braves.tv if you’re in-market, etc.)

Radio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan

Things have cooled down for the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates lately, as the organization is no longer running out a quartet of teams incapable of losing. But it’s still a very exciting time to be following prospects, and each of the teams is a lot of fun, even if the red-hot starts have mostly cooled off. Plus, the Arizona Complex League gets started this weekend, bringing a fifth team into the fold!

For now, though, it’s just four. So let’s see what they did on Thursday.

Link to the 2026 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)

All listed positions in the roundup are the position played in that particular game.

AAA Sacramento (16-12)

Sacramento River Cats lost to the Salt Lake Bees (Angels) 4-2
Box score

Well that was a dud of an offensive performance. A day after scoring 17 runs, the River Cats had just 2 … which, in Salt Lake, is basically like getting shut out.

Sacramento mustered just 4 hits on the day, but half of them belonged to left fielder Victor Bericoto (No. 35 CPL), who went 2-4 with a double and a strikeout, providing not just 50% of the team’s hits, but 100% of their extra-base knocks and 100% of their RBIs.

Bericoto hasn’t been lighting the world on fire, but he’s hit safely in 12 of the last 13 games, and that includes 6 multi-hit games. His overall performance is quite encouraging, especially since this is his 1st real experience in AAA after 11 games there last year. His contact has been extremely impressive, as he has a .306 batting average and just an 18.5% strikeout rate, which has led to an .820 OPS and a 119 wRC+. A very solid season for someone who could factor into the Major League team’s plans sometime this summer or fall.

Designated hitter Buddy Kennedy had the only other notable day on offense, hitting 1-3 with a walk and his 1st stolen base of the year. Kennedy remains one of Sacramento’s hottest hitters, and while he’s more a depth signing than a developing prospect, he’s a good guy to have around should anyone get injured, especially since Tyler Fitzgerald is no longer in the system.

Unfortunately, the non-Bericoto big names in Sacramento’s lineup were all absent, either due to not playing well or not playing at all. A day after lighting the baseball field on fire with a 4-hit, 2-homer special, first baseman Bryce Eldridge (No. 1 CPL) went 0-4 and struck out 3 times, while second baseman Nate Furman (No. 39 CPL) went 0-4, and right fielder Grant McCray hit 0-3 with a walk and a strikeout. Jesús Rodríguez (No. 16 CPL) didn’t play.

Sacramento went with a bullpen game after the scheduled starter, RHP Trevor McDonald (No. 12 CPL), was flown out to Philly to be the Giants 27th man in the doubleheader, though he didn’t pitch there, either (and was optioned today). The River Cats used a quartet of pitchers who are on the 40-man roster, and that quartet resulted in 1 awful outing and 3 great ones.

RHP Spencer Bivens opened the game and again struggled, giving up 3 hits, 1 walk, and 3 runs in just 2 innings of work, while striking out 2 batters. It took very little time for Bivens to go from looking like he’d make the Opening Day roster to struggling mightily in AAA, and he’s now given up 3 runs in each of his last 3 games (though in 1 of those games only 2 of the runs were earned). That has tanked his ERA up to 6.46, and his FIP to 5.90. At this point it might be fair to wonder if his roster spot is starting to be in jeopardy.

But the other rostered pitchers were perfect. Literally! Following a 2-inning, 3-baserunner, 1-run appearance by LHP prospect Nick Zwack, rehabbing LHP Sam Hentges handled all 3 hitters in the 5th inning with 2 strikeouts. RHP Dylan Smith followed it up with 2 perfect frames that featured a pair of strikeouts, and RHP Joel Peguero (No. 27 CPL) finished off the pitching performance with a clean 8th inning that had a strikeout in it, and required just 12 pitches.

Hentges is the name that Giants fans will be looking closely at, given the disaster going on with Ryan Borucki, who seems to just be keeping the third southpaw reliever seat warm until Hentges is ready. His rehab has gone well from a production standpoint, but he hasn’t looked himself, and the velocity has been noticeably down. That was, unfortunately, still the case in this game. While he had a nice game, his fastball — which averaged 95 mph in his last MLB stint in 2024 — sat 92, and peaked at 92.5.

Smith continues to impress in his debut season with the organization, and has now thrown scoreless outings in 6 of his 7 appearances, including 4 times not allowing any hits. Peguero has fluctuated between great and quite poor, and well probably stay in Sacramento after his rehab is complete.

AA Richmond (18-4)

Richmond Flying Squirrels beat the Altoona Curve (Pirates) 18-6 (11 innings)
Box score

And now, for the most Minor League game imaginable. An 18-6 extra-innings victory. You don’t see that every day! Richmond trailed 4-2 entering the 8th inning, then tied the game. They took a 5-4 lead in the 9th, then blew the save in the bottom half of the inning. They took a 6-5 lead in the 10th, then blew the save in the bottom half of the inning.

And then they scored 12 runs in the 11th inning.

Leading the charge was the extremely exciting outfield duo of center fielder Bo Davidson (No. 4 CPL) and left fielder Scott Bandura. Davidson is unquestionably Richmond’s top prospect, and while his season has been somewhat rocky — and also interrupted by both an injury (bad!) and a child (good!) — it’s also had plenty of highlights, and provided ample reason for optimism.

Thursday’s game as much more the latter than the former, as Davidson hit 3-6 on the day, drew a walk, and capped the 12-run 11th inning with a majestic 3-run home run that cleared the fence by a mile. Admittedly that home run came off of a catcher who was thrown onto the mound for mop-up duty, but hey! They all look the same on the back of the baseball card!

Davidson’s numbers are still trying to catch up to his teammates, as he has a .765 OPS and a 91 wRC+ on the year, but he’s striking out just 23.2% of the time, and hitting a home run every 13.8 plate appearances. He does have a little bit of a Munetaka Murakami thing going on right now, though, as he’s hitting just .230 and doesn’t have any doubles or triples despite his 5 home runs.

As for Bandura, whose prospect status has at times been overshadowed by Davidson (the pair were promoted together last year), it was more of the same on Thursday, which is to say his excellent season remained excellent. He hit 3-4 in the game and drew 3 walks while striking out once … and while Davidson capped the scoring, Bandura started it, with a home run to lead off the 1st inning.

Bandura, who was also caught stealing once, is now up to a 1.033 OPS and a 168 wRC+ on the season, as he continues to obliterate the Eastern League. The 24-year old, taken in the 7th round in 2023 out of Princeton, has taken huge strides this year, especially in the contact department. He had a 30.6% strikeout rate and an 11.6% swinging strike rate during his 2-month stint with Richmond last year, which followed a 24.1% strikeout rate and a 9.1% swinging strike rate in High-A Eugene. This year? Just a 17.4% strikeout rate and an 8.0% swinging strike rate. Really couldn’t ask for a better start to the season, and it’s hard to find a positional group in the farm that’s as exciting as Richmond’s outfielders (the 3rd player in that exciting trio, right fielder Jonah Cox, only hit 1-5 on Thursday, but did lay down a sacrifice bunt and steal his organization-leading 14th and 15th bases).

Third baseman Parks Harber (No. 17 CPL) is starting to settle into the level and had his best game yet, hitting 3-6 with a double and a walk. Harber missed the 1st few weeks of the season rehabbing the hamstring injury that he sustained during Spring Training, but is starting to get into a groove. After striking out 10 times in his 1st 4 games of the year, he didn’t have a single strikeout in this game.

It was a very bad pitching day, with Richmond avoiding trouble despite issuing 13 walks and allowing 13 hits. It was a funny day in the walk department … not only did the Squirrels allow 13 of them, but they worked 11 of them!

Starting LHP Joe Whitman (No. 26 CPL) had quite a tough go of it, needing 73 pitches to record just 10 outs. He wasn’t the worst walk offender — he only issued 2 of them in 3.1 innings — but also only threw 42 pitches for strikes. In all, it was the issue that has plagued Whitman for most of his career that bit him on Thursday: throwing too many hittable pitches, especially with his fastball. He gave up 6 hits (which included a pair of doubles), while striking out 3 batters.

All of that added up to 3 earned runs to his name, moving his ERA to 6.04. His FIP remains a much more palatable 3.57, the result of a very nice strikeout rate (11.3 per 9) and a very solid walk rate (3.2 per 9). But, just as he did last year at the same level, the 2023 2nd-round pick is simply allowing way too many hits: in 22.1 innings this year, the 24-year old Whitman has given up 22 hits, which includes 8 extra-base knocks.

The bullpen was bad, and RHP Tyler Vogel gave up 3 hits and 3 walks in 2 innings, though somehow only got tagged for 2 runs and 1 earned run. After a brilliant start to the season, Vogel has now had back-to-back rough games, though he still has just a 1.80 ERA … but a 6.01 FIP, the result of 11 walks in 10 innings.

High-A Eugene (18-5)

Eugene Emeralds beat Spokane (Rockies) 7-5
Box score

It was also a walk-heavy day for the Emeralds hitters, who only had 6 hits on the day but drew a whopping 12 free passes. That primarily came from the star-studded top of the order: the leadoff hitter, center fielder Trevor Cohen (No. 15 CPL), hit 1-3 with a double and a strikeout, and drew 2 walks. The No. 2 hitter, shortstop Gavin Kilen (No. 7 CPL), also hit 1-3 with 2 walks. And the No. 3 hitter, center fielder Dakota Jordan (No. 5 CPL) didn’t put the ball in play all day, striking out twice while taking the slow jog to first base on 3 different occasions.

Walks may not be part of San Francisco’s plan, unfortunately, but for that trio it’s par for the course. Cohen, the team’s 3rd-round pick last year, has a 17.8% walk rate on the season, which has given him a .708 OPS and a 112 wRC+ despite hitting just .220 with limited power. Kilen, the organization’s reigning 1st-round pick, has a more modest but still solid 9.0% walk rate, while striking out just 20.0% of the time, and he’s now at a .767 OPS and a 114 wRC+. And Jordan? Well, it feels like all he does is draw walks, hit for power, and strike out. Thursday’s game brought his walk rate up to 13.1%, but his strikeout rate up to 31.3%. In all, the 2024 4th-round selection has a .896 OPS and a 149 wRC+, and in 99 plate appearances this year has struck out, walked, or had an extra-base hit 54 times. Talk about 3 true outcomes!

That trio set the stage for the cleanup hitter, left fielder Carlos Gutierrez (No. 18 CPL). And because Gutierrez had the team’s best day, they won, with the 21-year old lefty hitting 2-5 with a triple, a double, and 3 runs batted in.

Gutierrez is not your prototypical cleanup hitter, as he’s a speedy contact maven who doesn’t have a ton of power … though the contact hasn’t always been there this year, and he showed up to Eugene looking notably bigger and more athletic, and has turned that into some pretty productive power. Despite having just a .229 batting average (it was .351 with Low-A San Jose last year), Gutierrez is rocking a .759 OPS and a 113 wRC+, the result of 9 extra-base hits in 79 plate appearances and a 10.1% walk rate. He sure is one of the more fun players in the system.

It was a dual starter game for the Emeralds, with RHP Ryan Slater — who faced just 1 batter — providing the only true bullpen work. Those piggybacking starters, LHP Tyler Switalski and RHP Niko Mazza, however, had very different days.

Mazza was the star. He entered to start the 6th inning, and handled the final 4 innings of the game smoothly and easily, giving up just 4 baserunners (2 singles and 2 walks), allowing no runs, and striking out 3 batters. The 2024 8th-round pick out of Southern Mississippi has struggled with walks this year, but lately he’s been nearly unhittable. After a pair of rough outings to begin the year, Mazza has pitched 13 shutout innings over his last 3 games, and allowed just 4 hits, while striking out 16 batters. Paired with the rough start — and the many walks — Mazza has a 3.44 ERA and a 4.34 FIP on the year.

As for Switalski, well … you can’t be perfect forever. The funky southpaw, taken in the 16th round in 2024 out of West Virginia, had been nothing short of excellent to start the year, until Thursday’s start. He found the strike zone fairly well, and struck out 6 batters in 4.2 innings with just 1 walk, but he also gave up 7 hits, which included 2 home runs and 2 doubles, all of which tattooed him for 5 earned runs.

That was quite outside of his character. Switalski wasn’t a big strikeout guy last year, but between San Jose and Eugene he allowed just 75 hits in 96.2 innings … and just 3 home runs. He’s matched that home run total in his last 2 starts this year. Still, he has just a 2.78 ERA and a 3.71 FIP on the season and has dramatically improved both his strikeout and walk rates year over year.

Low-A San Jose (16-8)

San Jose Giants beat the Visalia Rawhide (Diamondbacks) 13-12
Box score

Double-digit runs for the 7th time already this season! If only the Major League Giants could take a hint from the Minor League Giants!

Despite the high-scoring affair on both ends, the star of the game actually came on the mound. San Jose gave up all their runs from the 6th inning onward, meaning one thing: it was a star showing by the starter. And that starter is someone who is heating up in a big way: RHP Argenis Cayama (No. 13 CPL).

We’re all familiar with the concept of a player performing better (or worse) than their stats, but that happens a lot more in the Minors, where the focus is on development. Cayama had a great game statistically, but it underscores just how good he was, and how encouraging the start was. As we’ve seen a few times this year with top pitching prospects, the trouble for Cayama came at the end of his outing, as the Giants tried to push him a little bit deeper into a game.

But Cayama was utterly dominant up to that point. How dominant, you ask? Through 5 innings he had allowed just 1 baserunner: a bunt single. Thanks to that hitter then getting thrown out by catcher Daniel Rogers, Cayama had faced the minimum entering the 6th inning, which included striking out the side in the 5th inning.

In the 6th he ran into some trouble, and even that was very mild: he hit a batter, and gave up an RBI double. He departed the mound with just that 1 run having scored, though RHP Jose T. Perez would allow the inherited runner to score, giving Cayama a pair of earned runs, which really doesn’t do the rest of his line justice: 5.2 innings, 2 hits, 0 walks, 1 hit batter, 8 strikeouts.

Cayama got rocked a bit in his 1st outing of the year, but since then has been better than advertised. His 4 starts since that opener have seen him throw 19.2 innings while allowing just 14 hits and 4 runs. But most impressively? Even including that 1st game, Cayama has struck out 30 batters in 23.1 innings … and walked 1.

30 strikeouts. 1 walk.

Cayama was a breakout star on the Complex League last year, but really struggled during a late season stint with San Jose, which was understandable given how young he was for the level, and the fact that he had nearly tripled the innings total from his debut season the year prior. No one should have been concerned with Cayama’s A-ball perfermance last year, and now he’s showing exactly why. He looks so much stronger and more physical this year, and the 19-year old is thoroughly dominating the level. What a joy to watch.

Unfortunately, it was nearly wasted by the bullpen, as Perez gave up 3 hits, 3 walks, and 5 earned runs while recording just 1 out, and RHP Melvin Pineda ceded 3 hits, 1 walk, and 3 earned runs, while also just recording 1 out. Both of those players saw their ERAs balloon past 15 which, I’m being told, is not very good.

RHP Garrett Langrell also gave up some runs, as he allowed 4 hits and 2 runs in 2.2 innings. But last year’s 16th-round pick struck out 5 batters, as he is looking like the bullpen’s version of Cayama: in 13.1 innings, the 24-year old has 20 strikeouts and just 1 walk. Fantastic!

It was all about the long ball on offense, as the Baby Giants had 3 home runs and no other extra-base hits (they did have 13 singles and 8 walks, though). Those dingers came from a trio of fairly unheralded prospects: Rogers, second baseman Isaiah Barkett, and third baseman Dario Reynoso.

Rogers hit 1-3 on the day with a solo shot, while also drawing a walk and getting hit by a pitch. He went undrafted last year out of Iowa, but performed well in a short stint with San Jose. He’s only played in 6 games this year, but he’s 5-21 with 2 extra-base hits and 3 walks, so he’s certainly holding his own, especially since he provides nice defense behind the dish.

As for Barkett, he hit 3-6 and smacked a 3-run shot, his 2nd of the year. Last year’s 10th-round pick is off to a blistering start this year, with a 1.048 OPS and a 167 wRC+, while playing all over the field (mostly at second, but a little time at third and in the outfield, as well). Barkett didn’t go to a big school (he played at Stetson), but still, he’s looked completely unfazed by Cal League pitchers, as he has a .383 average, and just an 11.0% strikeout rate. Pretty exciting stuff!

As for Reynoso, he hit 1-4 with a 2-run blast and a walk, while also striking out twice. Getting the ball over the fence had to feel nice for the recently-turned 21-year old, as he blasted 10 home runs in 53 Complex League games last year, but this big fly — in his 31st game with San Jose — was his 1st A-Ball dinger. As he has done throughout his entire career, Reynoso is getting a ton of hits (.276 average), drawing an absurd amount of walks (17.6%), and striking out way, way too much (32.4%). The overall package is an .804 OPS and a 122 wRC+.

Also nice days for shortstop Jhonny Level (No. 3 CPL), who hit 3-6, and now has a .991 OPS and a 147 wRC+, and designated hitter Broedy Poppell, who went 2-4 with 2 walks and 2 strikeouts, raising his OPS to .649 and his wRC+ to 80.

Home run tracker

5 — Bo Davidson — [AA]
3 — Scott Bandura — [AA]
2 — Isaiah Barkett — [Low-A]
1 — Dario Reynoso — [Low-A]
1 — Daniel Rogers — [Low-A]

Friday schedule

Sacramento: 5:35 p.m. PT at Salt Lake (SP: TBD)
Richmond: 2:00 p.m. PT doubleheader at Altoona (SP: Trystan Vrieling)
Eugene: 6:35 p.m. PT vs. Spokane (SP: Luis De La Torre)
San Jose: 6:35 p.m. PT at Visalia (SP: TBD)

When Blake Snell took the mound for the Ontario Tower Buzzers Tuesday night, his primary focus was continuing his ramp up for when he rejoins the Dodgers in the next few weeks.

However, that focus appeared to wane when Snell began throwing warm up pitches.

In a video posted to social media, the Ontario game presentation crew surprised Snell when they played his rap song while he warmed up. As seen in the video, Snell didn’t appear to like the music and after about 10 seconds, the song cuts out immediately after Snell looks up towards the press area.

Snell threw 3.0 innings and gave up one hit with six strikeouts.

Snell’s amateur rap career started in 2012 when he released the track “Rising Stars,” which featured Snell dropping bars while wearing a Tampa Bay Rays hat. He was drafted by Tampa Bay in the supplemental first round (52nd overall) of the 2011 MLB June Amateur Draft.

Our favorite rapperpic.twitter.com/0of59llk8n

— Ontario Tower Buzzers (@towerbuzzers) April 30, 2026

He made his big league debut on April 23, 2016 with the Rays and quickly emerged as one of the best pitchers in baseball. He won the AL Cy Young award in 2018 after he finished 21-5 with a 1.89 ERA but was then traded to the Padres 2021, where he won the NL Cy Young award in 2023 when he went 14-9 with a 2.25 ERA.

After a short stint with the Giants, Snell joined the Dodgers last year and was lights out, helping Los Angeles win their second consecutive World Series title.

However, that long season took its toll on Snell and his high-priced left arm. Shoulder fatigue plagued him through the winter and forced him to begin the year on the injured list.

Snell has completed two minor-league starts already as part of a rehab assignment and is scheduled to next take the mound for four innings Sunday with Triple-A Oklahoma City. After that, the team will decide whether he’s ready to return or will need another minor-league outing to get further built up.

While his return status is TBD, it’s pretty apparent that “Rising Stars” will not be making a cameo at Chavez Ravine.

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Everything we know about Alex Cora during his rudely interrupted tenure as manager of the Boston Red Sox lines up almost perfectly with everything we knew about him as a Dodgers player more than 20 years ago.

He communicates exceptionally well. He quietly makes a positive contribution. He handles failure admirably. Win or lose, he exhibits class.

Nothing has tested those traits more than what Cora, 50, endured over the last week. The man known throughout baseball as AC was fired by Boston on Sunday, turned down an offer to manage the Philadelphia Phillies a day later, then, while home in Puerto Rico, saw that an ultimatum he made last season to general manager Craig Breslow was reported by the Boston Globe.

Cora somehow found time to pen an expression of gratitude to the Red Sox organization and fans.

"Thank you for treating me with respect and most importantly accept me as AC," he wrote. "I’m grateful for this experience, it made me better.

"Thank you for the hard work, sleepless nights, professionalism and effort to help me lead this great organization."

Communication and class until the end, no doubt. Yet the single blemish on his resume is eternally painful to Dodgers fans.

Cora was the Houston Astros' bench coach in 2017 when the Dodgers were victimized by a sign-stealing scheme during the World Series, which the Astros won in seven games.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred released a report in January 2020 that detailed how in 2017 and 2018 the Astros illegally used electronic equipment to steal signs. Cora was central to the scheme, the report saying he “arranged for a video-room technician to install a monitor displaying the center-field camera feed immediately outside of the Astros dugout.”

By 2020, though, Cora was beloved in Boston for piloting the Red Sox to the 2018 World Series championship over the Dodgers in his first season as manager. Nevertheless, he was fired a day after the report was released and suspended by MLB for the 2020 season.

Cora was rehired as Boston’s manager after serving his suspension, stating he would apologize for the rest of his life. And on the first day of spring training in 2023, he addressed his role in the scandal, apologizing to three new Red Sox players who were Dodgers in 2017: Kenley Jansen, Justin Turner and Kiké Hernández.

The mea culpa was well-received by the trio and underscored Cora's ability to smooth over even the most awkward situations.

“I’m going to be 100% honest with you — I just felt like I wanted to cry at that moment when he said that,” Jansen told a Boston radio station. “I felt like a weight came off."

It's now known that Cora backed his coaches when Breslow wanted to fire several of them last season. The Globe reported that Cora told the general manager that the Red Sox would have to fire him as well.

Breslow backed down then but not last week, firing five coaches along with Cora.

Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombroski responded swiftly, making Cora an offer even before firing manager Rob Thomson on Tuesday. The well-traveled Dombroski has led four franchises to a World Series — an MLB record — including one alongside Cora with the Red Sox in 2018, and the offer to jump to the Phillies was tempting.

But Cora put family first, telling Dombroski he wanted to take time with his fiancée, Angelica, and twin 8-year-old sons, Xander and Isander. After all, he is still under contract with the Red Sox through 2027, and is owed $14 million.

That's about what he earned in 14 seasons as an infielder properly labeled as a good-field, no-hit, great clubhouse presence. Cora was the Dodgers' primary shortstop in 2000 and 2001, then moved to second base through 2004.

The Dodgers' center fielder from 2002 to the 2004 midseason was Dave Roberts, the current Dodgers manager who remains a close friend of Cora's. The 2018 World Series was the first to feature two minority managers — a point of pride for the Puerto Rican-born Cora and for Roberts, who is half Black and half Japanese.

Cora won a World Series as a Red Sox reserve in 2007 and finished with a career batting average of .243 with a paltry 35 home runs in 3,825 plate appearances — the most memorable of which came May 12, 2004.

Cora capped an 18-pitch at-bat that included 14 foul balls with a home run against Chicago Cubs right-hander Matt Clement.

“What a moment! 9:23 on the scoreboard, if you want to write it down for history. What an at-bat!” Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully exclaimed. “That’s one of the finest at-bats I’ve ever seen, and to top it off with a home run, that is really shocking.”

Cora took a curtain call from the Dodger Stadium crowd and Scully said, “Yeah take a bow, Alex! You deserve it and then some!”

What Cora almost undoubtedly has earned now is another shot at managing. His 620-541 record is well above average. His reputation — sign-stealing scandal notwithstanding — is glowing.

The Phillies hired former Dodgers manager Don Mattingly on an interim basis and likely will circle back to Cora after the season. If not, other teams are expected to come calling.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Every day, Pinstripe Alley offers updates on what the Yankees’ top American League opponents are up to through the Rivalry Roundup. The AL East is well-trodden ground there, but one full month into the season, we’re going to take a peek around MLB as a whole and check in with each of the other five divisions. Who’s surprising? Who’s underwhelming? Who’s simply mediocre at the moment? Read on and find out.

First Place: The Athletics (17-14)

Top Position Player: Shea Langeliers (1.4 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Aaron Civale/Jack Perkins (0.6 fWAR)

Who woulda thought? The Don’t-Call-Them-Sacramento Athletics lead a tight race atop the AL West through the end of April with the third-best record in the American League. Now, that’s more an indictment on how bad the Junior Circuit has been so far, but the A’s have made it work with series wins over the Yankees, Mariners, and Rangers.

While their calling card entering the year was a sneakily stacked lineup, they’ve actually been slightly below average despite some big individual performances. Shea Langeliers has been the best catcher in the AL through April, posting a 165 wRC+ in 30 games, but the real standout here is former Mets prospect and right fielder Carlos Cortes, who’s hitting .391 with a wRC+ of 210 in 78 plate appearances. Think they’re regretting letting him leave in minor league free agency over in Queens?

The reasons behind the offense’s early struggles are a more tame start for Nick Kurtz (.425 SLG but a 23.7% BB%), an underwhelming Jacob Wilson (85 wRC+), and a downright terrible start for both Lawrence Butler (51 wRC+, -0.3 fWAR) and Brent Rooker, who’s currently on the injured list after a nightmarish first 15 games.

The pitching has been a mixed bag as well. J.T. Ginn, Aaron Civale, and Jeffrey Springs have all been solid in the starting rotation, while they’ve gotten mixed results from old friend Luis Severino. The only weak link seems to be Jacob Lopez, whose peripherals match his high ERA and negative K-BB%.

Hogan Harris has been a star in their bullpen, shouldering a heavy workload (17 appearances) with a 2.65 ERA, but he’s a candidate for regression with his high walk rate and LOB%. Mark Leiter Jr. is struggling as their setup man, but closer Joel Kuhnel, Scott Barlow, and former Yankees prospect Luis Medina have produced for a league-average bullpen.

That’s been the story of the A’s so far, perfectly average in every aspect. That wouldn’t be so bad if it sustained.

Second Place: Seattle Mariners (16-16)

Top Position Player: Randy Arozarena (1.1 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Logan Gilbert/George Kirby (0.8 fWAR)

Good teams have slow starts every single year, but how long they last can be a big indicator of just how good that team is. It wouldn’t surprise anyone if Toronto, Boston, Philadelphia, or even the Mets rebounded to sneak into the playoffs, but they all sit below .500 after April. It’s even cost a few managers their jobs.

For Seattle, they’ve rebounded from an 8-13 start to be at .500 as the month ends, and the reason why they’ve started playing like the division favorite they are is that their slumbering offense is finally waking up. All of a sudden, they’re seventh in wRC+ despite agonizingly slow starts from Cal Raleigh, Josh Naylor, and Julio Rodriguez. All three remain below average, but have rebounded from being among the worst hitters in baseball through two weeks.

Brendan Donovan was mashing and looked like a slam-dunk all-star starter before getting hurt, Dominic Canzone and Cole Young were breaking out as fixtures at right field and second base, and Randy Arozarena has been as solid as ever. The fact that they have such a deep lineup, even with the heart of the order struggling, makes you feel good about them still winning this division.

They’ve only needed five starting pitchers so far, and four of them are doing good work. The quartet of Bryan Woo, Logan Gilbert, Emerson Hancock, and George Kirby all have microscopic walk rates and good results to back it up. It’s aesthetically pleasing for a starter to be filling the strike zone and being effective. The weak link is, shockingly, the typically steady Luis Castillo, who’s been downright bad since his strong start against the Yankees at the end of March with a 6.35 ERA in 28 innings over six starts.

Seattle’s bullpen is fourth-ranked in baseball, which doesn’t match the eye test. I vividly remember their collapse against the Padres on April 15th and their near-collapse a few days later against Texas, but they’ve been awesome aside from that. Cole Wilcox is struggling, and the disaster in San Diego skews Andrés Muñoz’s numbers, but they’ve gotten strong months from Jose A. Ferrer, Eduard Bazardo, and Matt Brash, who’ve pitched to soft contact with efficacy.

It’s hard to see a team in this division that can get to the Mariners’ level if the big bats start hitting.

Third Place: Texas Rangers (15-16)

Top Position Player: Josh Jung (1.0 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Jacob deGrom (0.9 fWAR)

We just saw the Rangers deep in the heart of Texas, as the Yankees took two of three from another middling AL West club that hasn’t been able to gain momentum through the first month of the season.

The offense is mediocre, ranking around 20th in most categories. Josh Jung is fully breaking out after a rough first week, and Brandon Nimmo has been great, even though he went down with a hamstring injury on Wednesday. Outside of them, they have Corey Seager barely above the Mendoza line, young guys like Evan Carter and Wyatt Langford (who’s now on the IL) struggling, and vets like Kyle Higashioka and Jake Burger in deep funks.

As for the rotation, even with Nathan Eovaldi struggling until his gem against the Yankees on Wednesday, they’ve gotten peak Jacob deGrom and a strong start from young Kumar Rocker to steady an inconsistent starting group. Jack Leiter’s been up and down, as has offseason trade acquisition MacKenzie Gore, but there’s great upside with this group.

Texas has the best bullpen in baseball (2.82 ERA), and we saw that with how the Yanks struggled to get insurance runs late. Jalen Beeks, Jakob Junis, Tyler Alexander, and Jacob Latz all have ERAs under 2.10 while being used in at least 13 games. They don’t rank very well in strikeout or ground-ball rate, and the staff’s FIP is over a full run higher, so things might change in this regard soon, but it’s been their biggest strength early on.

Last Place (tie): Los Angeles Angels (12-20)

Top Position Player: Mike Trout (1.5 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: José Soriano (1.2 fWAR)

The Angels haven’t been very good, but that’s not all too surprising. Despite how dynamic they looked against the Yankees in the four-game split, they’ve been the usual mediocre team around that.

It’s the Mike Trout Show on offense, as the future Hall of Famer is proving that his sensational series at Yankee Stadium wasn’t a one-off, posting an even 1.000 OPS through 31 games. Behind him, the two most valuable players are Zach Neto and… Oswald Peraza? He’s still hitting well after his Revenge Series? Even with a good offense to start, the likes of Josh Lowe, Logan O’Hoppe, and Nolan Schanuel are in the dumps. At least Jorge Soler is back from his suspension.

On the pitching side, José Soriano has arguably been the best pitcher in the American League, as even his so-so start against the White Sox couldn’t raise his ERA above one. Jack Kochanowicz and Reid Detmers are pitching decently, but the highest-paid pitcher in the rotation (Yusei Kikuchi) has been ineffective and is now injured.

The bullpen has been an absolute travesty, ranking 29th in ERA. Their closer to start the year, Jordan Romano, fell apart in the four-game series in the Bronx and has since been released. Chase Silseth is by far the most effective reliever they have, as most of their high-leverage arms have gone up in absolute flames to start the season.

Last Place (tie): Houston Astros (12-20)

Top Position Player: Yordan Alvarez (2.2 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Hunter Brown/Peter Lambert (0.5 fWAR)

This is another team the Yanks have already seen this year, which reminds me that 16 of the team’s 31 games this year have been against this particular division. Only 15 of the final 131 are, so hope you enjoyed these teams while they lasted. The mediocrity of the AL West has allowed the Astros to start slowly once again, while not getting completely buried at only four games back of the first-place A’s. This happens every single year, and while Houston came up short last year, they won’t have as big a hill to climb if this division doesn’t shape up.

Their offense is one of the best in the sport and is keeping them in every game. Yordan Alvarez is finally healthy and showing why he’s one of the best pure hitters in baseball, looking like Aaron Judge’s biggest early competition for AL MVP. Christian Walker’s bat is back from the dead, Christian Vazquez has been great in a small sample, and even guys like Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, and Isaac Paredes have been adequate despite not hitting to their best capabilities.

Hunter Brown made two very good starts and then went on the shelf in the first week of April, yet he still shares a lead in fWAR on this abhorrent pitching staff. The other guy is 29-year-old Peter Lambert, who was previously released in spring training and has thrown 15.1 innings. Multiple starters are on the shelf, including Tatsyua Imai, whose transition to America has been nightmarish so far. Spencer Arrighetti (2.00 ERA) has been their best starter since he was recalled, as veterans like Lance McCullers Jr. and Mike Burrows have ERAs over six. And yet, this would at least be passable if…

… the bullpen wasn’t a complete and utter disaster. They have, by far, the worst bullpen in baseball, and aside from Steven Okert and Kai-Wei Teng, they’ve all been bad. Closer Josh Hader hasn’t thrown a single pitch, batting biceps tendinitis. Bryan Abreu has an ERA just under 13, AJ Blubaugh, Enyel De Los Santos, and Ryan Weiss are struggling, and even fill-ins like Colton Gordon and Roddery Muñoz can’t consistently get outs. A turnaround is impossible with a bullpen this bad.

Last fall, the Mariners fell one win short of winning the first American League pennant in club history. They returned this spring with high expectations, bringing back first baseman Josh Naylor and trading for on-base machine Brendan Donovan. They dropped 15 of their first 25 games, but are starting to heat up, winning six of their last seven games.

Kansas City Royals (12-19) vs. Seattle Mariners (16-16) at T-Mobile Park, Seattle, WA

Royals: 4.06 runs scored/game (23rd in MLB), 4.77 runs allowed/game (22nd)

Mariners: 4.19 runs scored/game (21st), 3.97 runs allowed/game (5th)

Donovan has been out since April 18 with a groin injury but is expected to return to action this weekend. The former Cardinals infielder is justifying the big trade so far, hitting .304/.437/.518 with three home runs in his first 18 games with the Mariners. Cal “Big Dumper” Raleigh is not hitting home runs at the same rate as last year, when he lead the league with 60 home runs, but he is also heating up with five home runs in his last nine games.

J.P. Crawford has the fifth-best walk rate in baseball at 18.8 percent. Josh Naylor has the highest pop-up rate in baseball at 27 percent. He stole a career-high 30 bases last year, and is 4-of-6 in steal attempts this year. Luke Raley is hitting .283/.340/.630 in home games.

Bryan Woo was an All-Star for the first time last year, earning Cy Young votes after putting up a 2.94 ERA in 30 starts. He had his worst start of the year his last time out, giving up seven runs and four dingers in three innings against the Cardinals. He throws a 95 mph fastball half the time, mixing in a sinker, sweeper, slider, and occasionally a change.

Emerson Hancock has yet to make 20 starts in a season in his career, but he may be having a breakthrough this year at age 27. He tossed six no-hit innings in his first start of the year, and has yet to give up more than three runs in an outing. He is right behind Woo with the sixth-lowest walk rate in baseball.

Luis Castillo is starting to show signs of rust at age 33. He gave up seven runs in his last start with a noticeable drop in velocity, leaving questions on what to do with him when Bryce Miller returns to the rotation. Bobby Witt Jr. is just 1-for-16 (.063) against Luis Castillo in his career.

Note that Friday night’s game will air exclusively on Apple TV with Wayne Randazzo (play-by-play), Dontrelle Willis (analyst), and Heidi Watney (on-field reporter) on the call.

The Mariners have the third-best bullpen ERA at 3.31. Andrés Muñoz has the sixth-best strikeout rate in baseball. He has converted six of seven saves this year, and five of the eight runs he has given up this year came in one outing. Matt Brash has yet to give up an earned run this year, and opponents are hitting just .091 against him, but left his last outing on Wednesday with side discomfort. Jose A. Ferrer has a reverse split this year, with lefties hitting .375 against him.

The Mariners are still expected to be one of the leading contenders for a pennant this season, with a strong pitching staff, a lockdown closer, and one of the best home run hitters in baseball. The Royals need to get back on track, but they missed an opportunity to take a series in Sacramento, and it doesn’t get any easier in Seattle.

After going 1-2 against the Toronto Blue Jays, the so-called “Chad Sox” sit at .500 four games into their 135-game season. After sweeping the Red Sox at the start of the March, things have not gone well for Houston. Their record stood at 5-2 then, and is now just 12-20 to Boston’s 12-19. Hey, the Sox are the better team in this matchup! The Astros have suffered an 8-game losing streak to get to this level, like the Mets and the Phillies. Boston meanwhile has achieved their record without a long steak but merely through frustrating play in four-game (or so) cycles.

With the Red Sox sitting 7 games under .500, they need to get as many wins as possible against the (other) struggling teams. A dropped series against the Blue Jays looms large. The sweep at the hands of the Astros looms large further back. The loss of Garrett Crochet for at least two weeks means they need to hold things together for 15 days, hopefully claw a couple games back, and then try and go on a run when their ace returns.

The Red Sox are likely to call up Jake Bennett. The 6’6” southpaw was acquired from the Washington Nationals for Luis Perales. SoxProspects describes him as a “[p]otential backend starter. Ceiling of a mid-rotation starter.” Although in five starts (21.0 innings) he’s put up a 0.86 ERA for the WooSox. And he’s had several months working with the Boston pitching think tank. He missed 2024 with Tommy John Surgery and has improved as he’s gotten further away from that setback. SoxProspects Andrew Parker has a bit more on the likely Friday starter.

The Friday starter we do know is Houston’s Mike Burrows. A right-hander, Burrows has been up and down this season. His season ERA is north of six. Of course when he faced Boston on April 1, he allowed just 2 runs over 5.0 innings. He’s struck out 33 and walked 12 over 31.2 innings. He also held the Yankees to 2 runs in 5.0 last time out so who can say what offenses are good.

Spencer Arrighetti is a right-hander who has made three starts this season. Over 18 innings he’s held the Rockies, Guardians, and Yankees to a total of 4 runs combined. Plus 21 strikeouts and 9 walks. Luckily the stopper, Connelly Early, is paired against him. Early is coming off a 6.2 inning win against the Orioles. The initial Chad Sox game. His only runs allowed were two solo shots.

Sunday, the Astros get to be the TBD team while the Red Sox send Ranger Suárez to the mound. Suárez was the bright spot for the Red Sox pitching against Toronto, throwing 8.0 scoreless, 1-hit, 10 strikeout innings in Canada. Aside from the outing against the Yankees, he’s been on a roll for the last month. Against the Jays, Tigers, and Cardinals he tossed 22 scoreless innings. A little more of that and some help from the bats and this looks like the game Boston has the best chance of winning. Of course, his season debut was against these Astros and was a 4.1 inning, 4 run outing.

Yordan Alvarez is hitting .356 with 12 home runs.

Former potential trade target and bad defender Isaac Paredes is at .253/.339/.384 with 3 homers.

Jose Altuve is buzzing along with a .250/.349/.393 slash line.

Christian Walker has bounced back after a rough 2025 for a .300/.371/.564 performance.

Overall, the Astros are struggling and hopefully that continues for a least three more days, if not months.

Probable Pitching Matchups

Friday, May 1: Mike Burrows (6.25 ERA / 5.14 FIP) vs. TBD (— ERA / — FIP)

Saturday, May 2: Spencer Arrighetti (2.00 ERA / 3.67 FIP) vs. Connelly Early (2.84 ERA / 4.60 FIP)

Sunday, May 3: TBD (— ERA / — FIP) vs. Ranger Suárez (3.09 ERA / 3.35 FIP)

When/Where to Watch

Friday, May 1: 7:10 PM on NESN+

Saturday, May 3: 4:10 PM ET on NESN

Sunday, May 3: 1:35 PM ET on NESN

The Michigan Wolverines’ baseball team got off to a slow start in Big Ten play thanks to a front-loaded schedule, but they are now one of the best teams in the conference. Michigan is currently 27-17 overall and 12-9 in Big Ten play. After a 1-5 start to conference play, the Wolverines have won their last five series, and every remaining opponent is behind them in the standings.

Next up: Maryland on the road.

Getting to know Maryland

Maryland is struggling this season, currently sitting with a 22-23 overall record and a 6-15 mark in Big Ten play. Despite the poor record, Maryland has a pretty strong lineup offensively. The Terrapins currently have five players hitting above .300 — Brayden Martin, Ty Kaunas, David Mendez, Paul Jones II and Jordan Crosland.

Martin leads the team with an exceptional .361 batting average. He doesn’t hit for a ton of power — he has just two homers on the year — but he has driven in 33 runs. Meanwhile, Kaunas is hitting .315 and has some more pop in the bat, as he has launched five homers and knocked in 37 RBIs.

Mendez is certainly one of the best bats in this lineup, as he is tied for first on the team with the most RBIs at 38. He also has seven long balls on the year and is hitting .312. Jones has good pop as well, as he has hit six homers and 31 RBIs so far this season to go along with his .306 average.

Perhaps the most dangerous bat in the Maryland lineup is Crosland. He is leading the Terrapins this season with 10 homers, and he is tied with Mendez for most RBIs with 38. He is currently hitting .305.

The Terrapins have done a solid job scoring runs this year, but pitching hasn’t been able to hold up. It’s hard to pinpoint who Michigan will face on the mound this weekend, but it is likely that two of the three starters will be Lance Williams and Nic Morlang.

Morlang has the most starts this season for Maryland (10), pitching 35.2 innings while giving up 30 earned runs on 54 hits (7.57 ERA). There are a couple other players with more starts than Williams, but somehow Williams’ 7.43 ERA is the best that Maryland has among pitchers who have consistently started this year. He has pitched 46 innings and has given up 38 earned runs on 53 hits. That should tell you how much Maryland has struggled this season when it comes to finding consistent pitching.

Series schedule

• Game 1: May 1, 6 p.m. ET, B1G+
• Game 2: May 2, 2 p.m. ET, B1G+
• Game 3: May 3, 1 p.m. ET, B1G+